The Servant Leader is a short book by Jason Anderson outlining principles of Kingdom leadership. Jesus really turned the world upside-down. Following is an excerpt about collaborating with others.
Corinth was one of the most important cities in Greece; prosperous and wealthy, it was the capital of the Roman province of Achaia. However, the Corinthian church had fallen into disputes and “disquieting irregularities in the conduct of the believers” that were challenging its very unity. Paul addressed these concerns through a series of letters and personal visits to Corinth where he discusses unity and diversity within the Church that produces a synergistic outcome greater than the individual parts could produce alone.
1 Corinthians 12:4-7 There are different spiritual gifts but the same Spirit; and there are different ministries and the same Lord; and there are different activities but the same God who produces all of them in everyone. A demonstration of the Spirit is given to each person for the common good.
Paul writes that the Holy Spirit is the originator of different kinds of spiritual gifts. The Greek word diaireseis expresses the idea of division of gifts, or distribution of the gifts all for the common good. Paul is building his case that we, especially servant leaders, must see the bigger picture to bring unity and collaboration in the Spirit as opposed to competition based on unique and diverse giftings. “All the gifts are to set forward the same great divine purpose.”
Later in the same chapter, Paul writes that the whole church is like a body (1 Cor 12:12). It is put together of many parts that are vital to life. There is no role that is too little, nor one that is too big. Instead, all parts are equally important and necessary. In other words, we need each other. We cannot do what God calls us to do in an atmosphere of competition but only in a spirit of collaboration. Thus, a servant leader understands that we need each other to succeed.
1 Corinthians 12:24-25 The parts of our body that are presentable don’t need this. But God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the part with less honor so that there won’t be division in the body and so the parts might have mutual concern for each other.
In these verses, Paul brings us to the understanding that there is no competition in the parts of the body, but rather a synergistically divine collaboration. “In the body all the members without distinction work for the good of the whole. No special care is lavished on one member to the detriment of other members.” The servant leader therefore does not view themselves as more important or significant than any other member of the team. Instead, all are equally necessary and must work together to succeed in God’s purposes. It is only the role that servant leaders fill which places them in a special area of trust.
A servant leader must then operate and build with the future in mind. “Servant-leadership, like stewardship, assumes first and foremost a commitment to serving the needs of others.” Servant leaders see the present role, task, or position as one that is entrusted to them for the benefit of others. This forward-looking approach to leading for others is vital in seeing our role as servant leaders.
When we begin to see that we are working for the benefit of others in a position of trust on God’s behalf, we can take a different approach to accomplishing tasks and goals. We stop seeing others as competition and obstacles. We quit working to advance ourselves and reap personal rewards and accolades, and we choose to focus on the success of others that leads to the success of the whole team. We truly begin to see how working together benefits everyone as we focus on the future gains for God’s Kingdom.
While humility, service, and collaboration are by no means the only practices, or spiritual disciplines, we must develop, I encourage you look for ways to practically apply them in your own life. Robert Foster, in his book Celebration of Discipline, writes, “[T]he Spiritual Disciplines are the means God uses to build in us an inner person that is characterized by peace and joy and freedom.” Development of our inner life is foundational for growing as a servant leader. Often understanding follows obedience as we discipline ourselves and apply what we learn as we journey with God. Allow Him to reveal ways to grow as a servant leader in humility, service, and collaboration.
